


the feel of the ocean & the taste of champagne

by ugandadistrict9



Category: Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator
Genre: Alcohol, Dadsona: Elijah Rae, Eventual Romance, Family Feels, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, MerMay, MerMay 2018, Music, Mutual Pining, References to Depression, Slow Burn, Slow Dancing, mer dadsona
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-05-06 08:53:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14638407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ugandadistrict9/pseuds/ugandadistrict9
Summary: When Robert got obsessed over a new cryptid in the area, it was no surprise to anyone in Maple Bay when he impulsively bought a boat and was rarely seen for weeks, spending most of his time on the water, searching for the mysterious creature.It would be a surprise to Elijah, the merman residing a short ways outside of the Bay, wanting nothing more than to protect his daughter from hunters like the ones who took away her mother many years ago.





	1. Cryptid Sighting

**Author's Note:**

> ok... yes im aware its no longer may but i didnt want to post this until it was finished as i am NOT a multichapter fic writing person. but ao3 is gonna delete my draft in a couple days and ive actually made a lot of important edits to this in it so. i had to post it before then. i have like 13k words of this written right now but we'll see how the timeline of me actually posting it as chapters works out. anywho im excited i hope ppl enjoy this, its my first au fic since like 2014 lmao

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robert saw the mermaid for the first time when he was out on Joseph's yacht. He was so distracted by the fascinating sight that he almost fell in the water trying to get a closer look.

Robert usually tended to avoid Joseph and all things related to him, but his barbeques were an exception. Joseph hosted a mean barbeque. Social functions weren't too much his thing, but he wasn't really trying to be avoidant of the other dads of the cul-de-sac, and he rarely ever had anything better to be doing anyways.

For some reason, instead of a backyard get-together like normal, Joseph decided that this time they would all get together for a party on his yacht. Robert generally didn't do boats or boat-related activities in general, and the idea of being stuck on a boat with Joseph made his stomach twist and turn, but he ended up coming along. Mary and all the others from the cul-de-sac were there, so in the end it was okay.

He sat, somewhat bored, sharing a beer with himself by one of the railings of the yacht’s deck. He stared down at the ocean, absentmindedly ignoring the crappy music sounding from Joseph's expensive sound system, and the chatter coming from the others.

That's when he saw a flash of movement in the depths below.

It could have been anything, really. This was the ocean, after all. Plenty of things lived in it. But it was the shape of the creature he had caught his glimpse of that set his brain into high gear. It was the size of a human. But no one was swimming, and they were too far from shore for it to be someone not from their crew. And it never surfaced for air.

Robert saw a shadow pass by again, and this time he gasped, dropping his beer. It was humanesque, that was for certain. Except... it had the tail of a fish. It was gone in an instant, but Robert was absolutely certain of what he'd seen.

He felt his shorts dampening from the beer spilling out beside him, and he absentmindedly reached over and uprighted it, not taking his eyes off the water. He stood and leaned over the railing. He didn't even blink, lest he miss seeing the mermaid again. With every toss and tumble of the waves in the water, he leaned further over the railing, veins coursing with the desire to see something supernatural. He leaned far enough that if he lost his balance, he was sure he would topple over right into the water.

“Robert, what are you doing?” A flat and confused voice asked from behind him, startling him to the point where he did lose his balance.

He thought he was falling, face first into the ocean, and he squeezed his eyes shut, submitted to the fate, but something was grabbing onto his leg.

“C’mon, you stupid heavy asshole, don't kill yourself,” she was saying. She yanked on him, surprising him with her muscle mass, and he used her help to right himself, planting his feet firmly on the boat once again.

“What the hell were you looking at?”

“A mermaid…” he mumbled stupidly.

Mary smirked into her glass. “You're a dumbass. For real.”

Robert grumbled something unintelligible, turning away to retrieve his beer from the floor.

Mary shook her head and walked away.

Ever since that day, he had never stopped thinking about it. He bought himself a small motorized fishing boat on a whim, and would set out to sea for days on end to look for the creature.

He was drawn to it, to the idea of such an unseen and impossible creature existing in the first place, and even more so to the idea of discovering it himself. He didn't have a plan for what he would do if he ever did find the mermaid, he just needed to see it for himself. He needed to know if what he had seen was real. He had read on the internet about other people’s reported sightings of mermaids, but it was just like any other thing -- there was no solid proof, and it was hard to really believe in. But Robert believed. Because he had seen it with his own eyes. Even if just for a fleeting second, he was sure that he saw a mermaid. Mary and the others certainly hadn't believed him, but in their defense, he often did make up cryptid-related stories for dramatic effect. But he was serious this time.

Robert sat on the boat, looking out at the water under the gentle early-evening sunlight. He chewed at his lip. He had been sitting in the same spot for almost an hour, just waiting for some kind of sign. He had researched mermaid lore, but none of it was really real or provable, so it was all taken with a grain of salt. The only things he could say for sure were that if they could breathe above the water, they probably didn't do it very often, or they would have been seen before; and that they must have a diet of fish of some kind. He had some raw fish in a cooler for bait, and nets, and fishing rods, and all kinds of crazy things he probably wouldn't need. Being honest, he had no idea what he was doing. The water wasn't really his domain; he was more of a woods camping guy. But it's not like he was normally doing anything productive in his life to begin with…. His days were often spent sleeping in past noon and spending hours binge smoking and day-drinking, trying to numb the ache of existence. Out on the water, here and now, he suddenly felt like he had a purpose. It was a feeling he hadn't experienced in years. And he was determined to get at least a fraction of _something_ out of it.

He sighed, breaking into a box of snacks he had brought along. He thought back to home for a second as he brought the cracker to his lips, used to the feeling of a dog lingering about whenever he had food. Betsy was at home, and in Damien’s care at the moment. Damien had been overjoyed when Robert had asked him to come over and feed and walk Betsy for a few days, since the man couldn't keep a dog himself due to his son's allergies. Robert hoped Betsy was having a good time, too. She was one of his only reasons for getting out of bed most days.

The sun was starting to dip below the horizon, and Robert was almost starting to think he should head back home. He didn't know what he was doing. He didn't even know what he hoped to accomplish. Even if he did see the mermaid again… what would happen? Just like any other cryptid sighting in the world, he would probably catch a glimpse of it and then never see it again. And perhaps he already had caught his only glimpse on the yacht weeks ago. And it was harder to track something underwater. There were no footprints, no smells, and he couldn't exactly set up cameras. It was hopeless, truly.

But something in his heart was telling him to stay.

Then he saw a flash in the water. He crept to the side of the boat and quickly observed below… but there was nothing there. His heart rate had gone up tenfold as he stared into the gently rippling water. Something must be there. Something _had_ to be there. The humanesque fish creature had to exist. He wasn't crazy. Well, he probably _was_ , but he wasn't wrong about fish people.

But the ripple he had seen in the water was only a regular fish. He sighed, resting his face in his hands and looking out as the sun set over the sea. It was beautiful. But it always reminded him that he was alone. Another day gone by and he’d done nothing but be useless and alone. Maybe he hoped that he’d find someone to finally understand him. But that was stupid -- he already had people. Mary and Damien understood him. To an extent, at least. But he had so much trouble opening up to them. Somehow, it seemed to be easier to talk to a hypothetical killer sea creature than his own close friends.

“I'm lonely,” he admitted out loud. There was nobody around to hear him here. (Unless maybe the mermaid was.) They were words he hadn't told anybody in a long time.

“I don't know if you exist, or if you're gonna try to kill me when I find you, but for some reason I want to anyways. I want you to exist. I read a lot of mythology that said mermaids seduce sailors and lead them to their deaths, but I think I might be okay with that, y’know? I just want to see something supernatural, even if it's only for a minute before I meet a gruesome and horrible end. It sure would be a lot cooler of a way to die than anything I've tried.”

Robert blew out a long breath, and stuck his hand in the box of crackers again. He brought one up to his mouth, and tossed the other in the water. Small fish came up to nibble on it. No mermaids joined them.

…

When Robert got home that night, it was long past dark. He stumbled through his mess of a house without turning on any lights and flopped down in his bed. He lied there, wondering about the mermaid. It had to be real. It just had to. His life had no meaning otherwise. Well, maybe he was being overdramatic, but he really didn’t care. He pulled out his phone and opened up the reddit he had been reading about other people who had reported seeing mermaids. He wanted to believe. Some of the stories were pretty far-fetched, but many were similar to his own: seeing a flash of something in the water that was too big and too human shaped to be a regular fish, and being inexplicably mesmerized by it. There were a few people who said that they had actually met the mermaids, and Robert wasn't sure if the stories were realistic or if he just wanted them to be true so badly in his heart that it was messing with his brain.

He sighed, setting the phone aside. He needed to go to sleep. He rolled over to see Betsy at the foot of his bed, wagging her tail. He leaned over and scooped her up. He smiled as his dog settled into the bed beside him, and he laid his head down as well.

“Goodnight,” he murmured to her, before falling asleep.

\---

Elijah had been seeing the boat hovering about for days now. There was something peculiar about it. It seemed almost like nobody was on it at all. Usually when humans went out on boats, they had some sort of reason or purpose. More often than not, when they stopped, or were moving that slow, it was to fish. But Elijah had crept under the bottom of the boat, awaiting a fishing line or something to be cast into the water, and nothing ever came. He didn’t hear any sounds of people, either. Eventually, he heard a voice, and swam away with a start. He couldn't risk anybody seeing him.

The boat was there again a few days later. He saw it on his way to meet Amanda to bring her home from her friend’s place. Once again, the vessel was just looming there ominously. Doing nothing. Elijah couldn’t contain his curiosity anymore. He swam up to the surface and poked his head up above the water, a safe distance away from the boat but close enough to get an idea of what was going on.

As soon as Elijah’s head was above the surface, he saw that there was only one person on the boat. And as soon as he saw that, he saw …. that person was looking _directly_ at him. Elijah gasped, but it was too late to disappear. He had already been seen. He froze in place.

The man on the boat looked angry. He had a dark complexion and deep bags under his eyes. He appeared a dirty, unkempt, frightening creature. His eyes were burning, dark and fiery. And he was staring into the merman’s soul.

...

The creature was less of a mermaid, and more of a mer _man_. But not quite like the usual mermen you’d see in pop culture… Gills were showing on his neck, and he was speckled with yellow and green scales all over the parts of him that Robert could see. His face, while certainly humanesque, had some unexpected qualities as well. The eyes had a slightly inhuman glaze to them and seemed to never blink, and within its mouth were what looked like some pretty big fangs. As soon as he’d been seen, the merman ducked his head back under the water.

“Wait!” Robert shouted, rushing to the side of the boat, kneeling up on the edge. He leaned so far over that he almost toppled into the water. He steadied himself as the merman’s head popped back up again. Robert could see it much closer now. His mouth fell open as he looked upon the creature’s face. Its mouth was open in a small gasp as well, revealing dangerous looking fangs.

Robert knew he had to do or say something, but he found himself absolutely breathless in the face of the cryptid.

“Are you going to eat me?” Robert asked breathlessly, unable to look away from the creature’s stare.

The creature was silent a moment. While it didn't seem like it was going to eat, kill, or even injure him, Robert suddenly realized that it probably didn't understand english. But then ... it spoke. Its voice was soft and timid.

“No.”

“Are you sure?” Robert tried to joke, doing his best to sound his usual brand of humorously deadpanned, but his voice came out uneasy and his breath caught in the back of his throat. “Because you could.” He swallowed thickly. “You could if you wanted. I-I’d be into that.”

The merman stared at him for a moment, still unblinking. “Uhh, no thank you,” he said, finally casting his gaze down at the water. “I don't eat people.”

“Interesting…”

The merman tilted his head.

“A lot of stories I’ve heard about merfolk said that they lure sailors in with their devastating good looks, then drag them in the water and kill them.”

“There are… a lot of different types of merfolk. I’m not-- I'm more scared of you than you are of me…”

Robert blinked.

“Besides, I really don't think I'm exactly ‘devastatingly good looking’ enough to do that even if I wanted to,” the merman chuckled awkwardly.

“Oh? Something happening in my pants right is telling me otherwise…”

“What?”

“What?” Robert shifted a hand self-consciously over his lap.

The merman squinted at him, sinking further down into the water. Robert felt his heart rate increase, worried that the creature was going to leave and never be seen again. He racked his brain for something to say, _anything_ , to make him stay. But he wasn't good at small talk.

The creature continued to lower himself into the water until only his eyes were showing.

“Wait, don't go!” Robert hated how desperate the words sounded falling from his lips.

The creature stared at him. Robert became almost sure that he was never going to answer, and the desperation he felt was unmatched in intensity by anything he had ever felt before. He wanted to reach out and grab the fishman by the hand or something, but he feared that would only scare him farther away.

“At least tell me if you have a name,” he pleaded. “And tell me whether or not I'll ever see you again.”

The merman eyed Robert up carefully. Robert held his breath, waiting, waiting. But there was no response.

The merman sank back down into the water, and Robert cried out, desperately reaching towards him, leaning too far and toppling forward. There was a huge splash, and Robert gasped as he sank into the cold water in his too-heavy clothes. He spat out the water in his mouth as he surfaced, and looked around shakily, not seeing the merman anywhere. Had he really blown it? His only chance to meet this cryptid and he’d blown it, just like that?

Then, something was grabbing him. He flinched, sinking below the waves as he stopped treading water for one frozen moment. He resurfaced with a cough, only to feel rough hands brushing his bare middle where the fabric of his shirt was floating freely away from his body. His eyes widened as he felt himself being moved against his will. He kicked his legs desperately, but his attacker turned out not to be an attacker at all, and rather a savior.

The merman lifted Robert up out of the water and sat him down on the end of the boat. Robert stared in awe, speechless.

“Elijah,” the merman said suddenly, breaking away from Robert’s gaze. “I’m Elijah. And… to answer your second question….” he swallowed, brushing a wet hair from out of his eye. “Maybe.”

Robert blinked.

“Just don't tell anybody about me,” said Elijah. “Or else. I'll … eat you. You've seen now, that I'm strong…”

It seemed like Elijah was trying to intimidate him now, and for some reason it was adorable.

“Nobody would believe me even if I did tell,” Robert smiled.

“Okay… Good.”

“I promise to keep you a secret.”

Elijah started to sink down into the water, not letting Robert out of his sight. He seemed very hesitant. Robert wondered if he’d ever even talked to any humans before.

“Are--are you going?” Robert asked.

“Yes,” said Elijah, voice small and timid.

Robert nodded, not sure of what to say. “It was … good to meet you. And uh… Thank you, by the way. I'm not normally so clumsy.”

“That's alright. You're welcome.”

They exchanged another long, unblinking look, and then Elijah sunk below the water once more.

With one small splash of his tail reaching the surface of the water and glimmering gorgeously in the fading sunlight, Elijah was gone.

Robert let out a long exhale, resting his head in his hands. He was soaked to the bone, and he felt stupid for wearing jeans and socks on a boat in summer. He was lucky it had been too hot that day to wear his signature leather jacket.

He removed his socks and pulled his wet shirt over his head, and groaned as he realized that he had his cell phone in his wet front pocket. He sighed, resting his head in his hands, and stared out at the sea. He would relive his mythical encounter over and over in his head all day.

He sat in silence on the sea for a while longer before heading home, trying to decipher why he had literally fallen head over heels for a sea creature

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you guys enjoy! kudos/comments are super appreciated :)  
> i have a super busy schedule these days but i have had what could be a chapter 2 & 3 written since early may so it shouldnt be too too long til i update. itll be weird for me posting a fic chapter by chapter but hopefully we're going on this journey together now yall lmao


	2. What is love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elijah POV, and the second encounter between merman and man.

The man on the boat was being weird. He was already scary and then when he started saying things that Elijah didn't understand, he realized that he really had no obligation to stay. But when he’d tried to escape, the guy begged him not to go, _so_ frantically that he had actually fallen off the boat and into the water.

The splash startled Elijah. He whipped around as quickly as possible, to see that the water-logged man didn't appear to be a good swimmer. His instinct immediately changed from wanting to get away to wanting to help. He grabbed the man by the waist and pushed him up towards the boat. He strained to lift him above the water, but motivated by a certain rush of adrenaline, he’d managed.

The man coughed, wiping water from his eyes, then he was staring at him again with those intense eyes. Only this time he looked a little more flustered. For the first time, Elijah realized how attractive the man actually was. At first glance, he had looked mean and intimidating, but when he was dripping wet and flustered, it set something on fire in Elijah’s heart, the thumps against his chest picking up in their pace and volume. He removed his hands finally from the human’s waist, drawing away slowly.

Before, he hadn't wanted to give his name out to a strange human, but in the moment, mesmerized, the words just tumbled right out of his lips. “Elijah. I'm Elijah.” He wasn't sure why or how he had gone from never wanting to see this man -- or any human man -- ever again, to saying “maybe,” but he was saying it. He swallowed. The man said nothing, but he opened and closed his eyes a few times, leaving Elijah to wonder if this was part of human body language.

“Don't tell anybody about me,” Elijah continued, deciding that more needed to be said before he left. Even if he was attractive, that didn't mean that this human could be trusted. Humans, as he knew them, were disgusting and menacing creatures. “Or else,” he added threateningly.

The human smiled as he threatened him, which frustrated Elijah immensely. “Nobody would believe me even if I did tell,” the man said, grinning. Elijah didn't know what was so amusing, but he went along with it.

“I promise to keep you a secret.”

Those words wouldn't get out of Elijah’s head the next day. His mind was swirling with thoughts and concerns of the mysterious human. He didn't trust humans, but he found himself drawn to this one in a way that troubled him. He didn't want to be drawn in by a human. He hardly knew anything about them. Alex had been extremely knowledgeable about humans, and it had still happened to her. He couldn't afford to make any mistakes. He was all Amanda had left now.

But as long as he was careful, there was no harm in talking to a human, was there?

He sighed. He would freak out if Amanda said she was talking to a human; there's no way he would allow it. He had to hold himself to the same standards as he had for his daughter. Talking to her last night, he was sure she had noticed how distant he was being. So he was out for a swim early in the morning, before she would awaken, to try and clear his head of the thoughts of his boat man. He knew that the human seemed keen on seeing him again, but Elijah was sure it would be a few weeks or something until they saw each other again. He would just have to wait.

Unfortunately, a massive wrench was thrown in that plan. A sound started to seep in from up above, distorted by the water, but melodic and hypnotising all the same. A quick glance up was all it took to see that it was the same boat from yesterday.

Elijah couldn't stop himself from surfacing.

...

Robert was back out on the water the next day, in what he hoped was a similar enough spot to yesterday’s so that Elijah could find him again. If Elijah even wanted to find him again. He hadn't even guaranteed that Robert would ever see him again _in his lifetime_ , let alone within the next 24 hours. But he persisted nonetheless. He sipped his mug of coffee, turning off the boat when he got to the right spot. It was still early. It was probably ridiculous of him to be out here so early, but he hadn't been able to sleep with all the questions racing in his mind -- which was ridiculous, in and of itself; sleeping was normally the only thing he did well. But he needed to learn more about this merman.

The water was peaceful. He had found out over the course of the last week that he really enjoyed being out on the water. Brian had asked him to go fishing before, to which he had vehemently refused, but he was realizing now that it probably wouldn't be so bad. It might be helpful for him, even.

But, as much as he did enjoy the water, after about 20 minutes of staring and waiting and sipping coffee, he still got bored. He decided to put on some music. It couldn't hurt, could it? Maybe Elijah would get scared off by it, but maybe he wouldn't. Maybe he’d like it, even. Robert didn't know anything about him, after all. He didn't even know if he’d be here at all.

He plugged his phone into the boat’s aux and put on some classic rock.

A piece of driftwood floated by his boat, and he collected it, drying it off on a spare towel, and pulling out a pocket knife. He hummed along to the tune, whittling away at the stick.

Before he knew it, there was a head poking up over the side of the boat.

“Elijah?” Robert dropped what was in both of his hands upon the sight of the merman.

“You remember my name?”

“Holy shit. Of course.” Robert picked up the knife and fumbled with the stick for a moment before rising to approach Elijah. “I… Hi.”

Elijah had a hint of a smile on his face. “Hi…”

“What brings you here?”

“That sound,” he said, closing his eyes and bobbing his head back and forth. “It's unreal. What do you call this?”

Robert frowned. “Peter Gabriel?”

“No, not the person singing, the other stuff. The background.”

“Music…?”

“That's it,” he murmured, swaying his body to the rhythm. “We have singing underwater, but we don't have all these other sounds,” he explained. “I hear stuff like this sometimes from human’s boats. I rarely ever get to hear it this close. It's _gorgeous_.”

Robert watched the outline of the merman’s glorious tail swish back and forth under the water, mesmerized.

When the song faded out, Elijah seemed to become shy of Robert’s gaze. He put his hands on the edge of the boat, and clung more tightly to the side, hiding his body from view.

“I think we both have a lot of things we could learn from each other,” Robert said, turning down the volume as the next song started.

“Yeah,” Elijah agreed quietly. “Like, for starters, what is your name?”

Robert smiled. “I’m Robert.”

“I don't know what it is about you, _Robert_ , but you somehow had me coming back. I don't much like humans, normally, but you felt different somehow. You made me curious. What have you been doing out here? I saw your boat here one day and then I kept seeing it again every day, but you weren't _doing_ anything. I swam up and hid below you for a while, waiting for you to start talking or fishing or partying or something… and you never did. It was like there was nobody on the boat at all. Then when I tried to go up and investigate, you saw me immediately. Almost as if you’d been waiting.”

Robert felt a bit self-conscious all of a sudden, but he didn't really see any point in lying. “I-I was.”

“You were…. waiting? For me?” Elijah didn't seem to understand.

“Uh, well… A while ago, I thought I saw a mermaid when I was on my friend's boat, and it kept me up at night. I had to go see if mermaids existed, because I saw what I saw, even if nobody would believe me. I'm partial enough to cryptid hunts, so it wasn't too new for me to start coming out to try and find you, but I didn't know where to look or what to even do… But I guess it didn't matter, because you’re here now.” Robert grinned.

Elijah recoiled a little. “You didn't want to _hunt_ me, did you?”

“No. I just wanted to see if you existed. I like to believe in something more beyond humans. I'm sick of humans. So I was like, ‘give me some sweet-ass killer fish dudes, hell yeah’.”

Elijah still didn't seem to understand, but Robert supposed that was okay. Suddenly, the merman flinched, ducking farther behind the edge of the boat.

“What's wrong?” Robert asked.

“You have a weapon…”

Robert frowned. A weapon…? What was he talking about? He looked around the boat, then down at his hands … where his knife still was.

“Oh. No, it's not for using as a weapon,” he explained, scratching his head with his free hand. “I'm carving.”

Elijah seemed unconvinced. “Carving?”

“Yeah.” He held up the piece of driftwood he had been working on. “It doesn't really look like anything yet, but I'm going to turn it into something.”

“Like what?” Elijah was peering up at it curiously.

Robert shrugged. “Don't know yet. I was just bored, so I started whittling it. I could make it into anything.”

Elijah frowned, giving a _hmm_ and examining the wood again.

A song with some heavy bass came on, and Elijah’s eyes went wide. “I recognize this kind of sound. Most boating people like this sound.”

Robert turned the volume up a few clicks.

“It's different up close,” Elijah blinked incredulously. “I-I can feel it in my chest!”

Robert snorted, unable to control the grin on his face. “Yeah, I guess you can.”

“Can you… make it louder?”

Robert clicked the volume up a couple more times.

“Wow,” whispered Elijah, staring down at where his hands were on the edge of the boat, where he could probably feel the vibrations from the bass booms. “Incredible…”

Robert watched Elijah’s fascination with a fascination of his own. There was really a merman leaning over the side of his boat... listening with an ernest enthusiasm to _What Is Love_. He stared up at him with wide blue eyes. Robert spent a few moments lost in them, and for a second, he really wondered: what  _is_ love? But then he cast his gaze elsewhere, not liking the way his cheeks were heating up.

When the song ended, Elijah snapped back to reality. “Oh, I have to go.”

Robert’s smile dropped a fraction. “Why?”

“I … don't want to tell you that.”

“Oh. That's fair, I guess. Your cryptid merman business isn't really any part of my business.”

Elijah smiled in a confused manner, starting to descend into the water.

“Okay. I’ll see you..”

“When??” Robert asked, leaning over the edge of the boat with a concerned look on his face.

Elijah was silent a moment, looking down at the water. “Tomorrow,” he decided, smiling up at him.

Relief washed over Robert. “Okay,” he breathed out a small sigh. “See you.”

And Elijah was gone.

But this time, there was a promise. Robert smiled. He knew he would see his merman again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there is [a playlist to accompany this fic!](https://open.spotify.com/user/67rwllfiwct67em12pjwfl9i6/playlist/3sDe6ZCDISjw4aaDcPl1lI?si=FaH4pTY1Q-S4BPIBWLdl4A) lots of it is to represent what would be in Robert's music library and then there are a few other songs that are relevant lyrically/are mentioned in the fic at some point! it started bc i mention robert listening to music and i wanted to think of what that music would be, and it turned into something of a science trying to add songs, so much time and effort was put into the playlist and now its like 4 hours long, whOOPS.


	3. Small Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its been so long since ive updated hsgshs ive literally had this one written and in a draft the entire time i just didnt feel 100% confident in it at the time i posted the first 2 and then i never looked at it again til now... rip. i hope yall are still interested in reading more of this!

Sure enough, the next day, Robert saw Elijah again.

Elijah had a shy smile on his face as he approached. The music from Robert’s boat was soft and soothing. Robert tried to hide his grin upon seeing him, but it was more than obvious to Elijah.

The merman had changed his mind on Robert in a flash after speaking to him the previous day. Humans were really interesting, and perhaps it wasn't a good thing that he had spent the last decade or so completely afraid and avoidant of their entire existence. He never imagined himself making friends with one, and yet here he was.

Yesterday, he had seen that Robert was certainly an interesting guy. He still didn't fully trust him, but he was _intrigued_ , and he knew the man was right in saying that the two could learn a lot from each other.

“Good morning, Robert,” he greeted timidly, grabbing onto the edge of the boat. “Your music is pleasant today.”

Robert nodded.

Elijah’s gaze flickered down to Robert’s hands, where he had been carving onto some wood again. His hands had a lot of nicks and scars on them, he noticed. He must do this a lot. There were some empty containers on the floor that looked like a common piece of trash Elijah often saw. He presumed it once contained beverage of some sort. It seemed like Robert had probably been here for a while. Was he waiting? Was that a bad thing or a good thing? Elijah couldn't tell.

He swallowed. “Don't you have better things to do than sit out on a boat by yourself?”

“I'm not by myself,” Robert said simply.

Elijah didn't know what to say to that, so he went back to being quiet and taking in the music. Robert picked up a small, flat rectangular object that was connected to the boat with some sort of thin rope, and touched it, and the music abruptly changed.

“Huh? What did you just do?” Elijah was leaning over the edge of the boat in awe.

Robert laughed. “The music is on my phone. I skipped it. Why, did you like that one?”

Elijah wrinkled his brow. “Phone?”

Robert just held up the device to show him. “Pretty cool technology, it's pretty recent. They never had shit like these when I was growing up. It does lots of things.”

Elijah still didn’t understand what it was, but the little bits of information he could get out of Robert were still interesting, as always, it seemed.

He listened closely to the new piece of music. Much of the lyrics were often incomprehensible to him due to all of the human vernacular, but he liked them all nonetheless. The sounds were incredible. It was probably his favourite thing about humans so far. There were still lots of things that he didn't know. Robert seemed to want to know more about him, too. Maybe it was his turn to initiate. Oh man. He was bad at that.

“Hmm, so how's Robert today?"

Robert seemed to grimace. Had he done something wrong? Oh no.

“I'm...” he frowned, “well.” He clicked his phone and the music became louder. He leaned back in his chair, sipping at another container of liquid.

Elijah frowned as well. “Don't you want to talk?”

“Silence is better than small talk.”

“Um. Okay. I'll try bigger talk then.”

Robert spat out his drink suddenly, and Elijah cringed, unsure of what he was doing wrong. He was starting to doubt himself for ever talking to a human in the first place, but then he realized that Robert was _smiling_.

“I don't get it…”

“Don’t worry about it,” Robert said, biting his lip in attempt to hide his grin. “Let's just get to that bigger talk.”

Elijah was puzzled. “O...kay..? Um. Ask me anything about me. Whatever you wanna know.”

Robert was silent a moment, nodding thoughtfully.

“Hmm, so, you said that there are a lot of different kinds of merfolk,” he spoke eventually. “But that you're _not_ the kind that kills people. Did you mean that there _are_ mers who seduce people and eat them, somewhere out there?”

“For sure.”

“Rad. How does it work then? Are there different species?”

“I’m not really too sure. I know there are different species, but I think that whether or not they eat people is different.”

“How so?”

Elijah tapped a thoughtful finger against his lips. “Hmm, let's see… Would you kill someone?”

Robert gave it a moment’s thought, before granting him a shrug. Then a shake of his head when the merman looked fearful. “No,” he decided.

“But you could.”

“I sure could, yeah.”

“And there are other humans who might?”

“Yeah.”

“Exactly. So I'm just like you.”

Robert thought about that for a while. “Huh,” he said.

Elijah simply nodded.

“So how many of you guys are there? Do you know?”

Elijah frowned. “I-I don't. I would imagine… not many. We don't really have much of a… society? like you humans do. We’re kinda just like sharks.”

“What do you do in your daily life?”

Elijah made a face. “Not much. Swim around. Look at stuff. Eat fish. Hang out with my daughter.”

“You have a daughter?”

“Yeah…”

“Oh. Cool. How old?”

Elijah frowned in confusion.

“Like, how many years?” When Elijah’s expression remained flat and not understanding, Robert shook his head. “How many years have you had her,” he explained.

“Years…? I don't... I don't know how humans measure time.”

“Oh. How do mermaids measure the time?”

“Position of the sun mostly… But Amanda is… definitely older than I can count... We don't really think about age much. There aren't really very many merfolk, and like I said, we don't have big societies like you human folk do.”

Robert nodded. “Understandable.”

“She's definitely old, though. I can hardly remember what life was like without her. I think my lifespan is probably longer than yours anyway, so the numbers wouldn't match up.”

“Oh, wow.”

Elijah shook his head. “But what about you? What do you do in your daily life?”

“ _Really_ not much,” he emphasized. “Lately, sit here in boats all day and drive my only few friends crazy trying to tell them about fish people.”

“Really? No.” Elijah stifled a laugh. “What do you normally like to do?”

“Nah, normally I….” his voice trailed off into a mumble, a sudden sorrowful expression overtaking him. “I-I go for walks with my dog, and hang out in… respectable establishments… Love my life…”

“Robert?”

The man fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat, allowing an uncomfortable pause before he responded. “Yeah?”

Elijah frowned. “You okay?”

Robert was scratching his facial hair. “Yeah.” His voice was flat and expressionless.

“Okay…”

Elijah shrunk further down into the water, rubbing his neck, unsure of how he was supposed to react to Robert’s sudden shift in mood.

Elijah swallowed. “Did you want to be alone? I'll go…”

Robert swallowed, wishing his depression hadn't decided to slap him in the face right in front of Elijah. He wanted them to learn cool things from each other, but he hadn't even considered that that would entail personal questions being shot at him.

‘What do you do?’ wasn't even a personal question; he was just too useless to have an answer, and it had really struck him. He didn't _do_ anything. He _never_ did anything. He indulged in self-destructive behavior and ignored daily responsibilities. He drank himself stupid and then did things he always regretted in the morning. He was an asshole, an idiot, and an all-around bad guy...

Elijah was saying something to him, but he wasn't catching it. He wasn't listening to his merman. He was with a _merman_ , the thing he had been dreaming about and losing sleep over for _so_ long, and now he wasn't listening. God _dammit_. He pinched himself on the thigh, looking up at Elijah. He could listen. He _would_ listen...

“Are you going home now?”

“What?”

“Are you going to go home now?” Elijah asked again.

“No, no… I’m alright now. I can stay as long as you want me to.”

“Well, actually, I should probably be getting home soon.”

“Oh.”

Robert hadn't even thought to ask what Elijah’s home life was like. In fact, he had never even thought about mermaids having homes at all, but it made sense now that he was thinking it. Did Elijah have a whole family? He had said something about a daughter, which tended to imply that there was a mother in the equation somewhere. Robert felt his heart sinking in a weird way at that thought. He shook his head to clear the storm of doubts away.

“Sure, I'll head home then, too.”

“See you tomorrow?” Elijah said shyly.

Robert smiled finally. “Tomorrow.”

And with that, Elijah disappeared into the depths below, leaving Robert behind on the surface, frustrated and with a million more questions.

He punched the console of the boat, groaning in frustration. He wished he wasn't so damn shitty. A stupid merman who could eat people if he wanted to was a better dad than he was. A stupid _hot_ merman. Robert punched the boat again.

He sat there for a long time, head in his hands, just listening to the music still quietly playing in the background.

Eventually, an upbeat song came on, reminding him that he was supposed to be happy. He sighed, starting up the boat and cranking up the volume.

He went for a bit of a joyride around on the boat to clear his head before going back to shore, until the smile trickled back into his face.

He was supposed to be happy. It didn't make any sense for him to be upset right now. He would see Elijah tomorrow. He would see his merman again tomorrow….

\---

For the next week, Robert and Elijah met up every day, even if just for a short while. They listened to music and talked, and Robert let Elijah try his coffee, making a promise to share more human food with him.

Elijah picked up on Robert’s avoidance of talking about his personal life, so instead they talked a lot about humankind as a whole, and about Elijah. Robert learned a lot of things about him, like that his favourite colour was yellow, his daughter was named Amanda, and that he envied humans for their ability to wear stylish clothes and listen to music on magical devices. Robert envied mermen for their freedom from a capitalistic society and the fact that they could, if they wanted to, eat the people that they didn't like.

One afternoon, when Robert was just about out the door to head down to the water, his phone rang.

He sighed, pulling it out from his pocket, only to almost drop it when he saw the name on the screen. He swallowed hard. He could feel his heart rate increasing as the phone went for its second ring.

Normally he wouldn't be able to answer such a hefty call like this, but for a brief moment, he thought of Elijah, and how fondly he spoke of his daughter. It was this jealousy that drove him to answer.

“Hello?”

“Hello,” the voice on the other end said. The voice sounded exhausted and he barely even recognized it. It felt like something was wrapping around his heart, squeezing so hard that it might pop.

“I know I called you, but I wasn't really even expecting you to answer. This is a first for me.” She cleared her throat. “Um, so… I'm coming to visit, dad.”

Robert swallowed. His mouth felt dry and his heart was about to burst. He was unable to respond for some time.

“Robert?”

He felt tears welling up in his eyes at the sound of his daughter calling him by name. She huffed into the phone after the next beat of silence.

“Ugh, typical. I don’t know why I even try.”

“Val, wait--”

But the line clicked before he managed to choke the words out. Robert closed his eyes, groaning. He leaned against the doorframe and let out a long exhale.

Val wanted to come here? What did she want?

He knew that there must be something going on in her life, but he never knew what. Maybe it was bad. He should be there for her. He stared at her contact on his phone for a long time, knowing he should just text her, but instead he locked it and set it aside, sighing heavily. He felt old and heavy all of a sudden. Older and heavier than he had ever felt.

He sank down to the floor, his mind full and his stare blank. He was spiralling down fast; I need to _do_ something about this, he thought to himself.

But he couldn't even bring himself to cry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some angst is a-brewin'


	4. Hold On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> imma keep it real with you folks....... im awful at coming up with mermaid lore and some of this might be dumb i hope it is ok... but take some amanda! and mary and damien!  
> chapter title is in reference to the santana song (which is highkey a rob/dadsona anthem 

“Heyyyy, daddy-o.”

“Hey, Amanda.”

Amanda was swimming up beside him, a sly smile on her face. Her green tail swished past him, then she was stopped abruptly in front of him.

“Where have you been? Normally we go out hunting while the sun is still in the sky, dad.”

“Sorry, Amanda,” Elijah sighed. “I didn't mean to make you worry.”

“Oh, I wasn't worrying. I was just _bored_! Where the heck were you? Have you found yourself a girlfriend or something?”

“No. Just…” He bit his lip. He had been trying to keep Robert a secret from Amanda. But he was so worried right now, he wasn't really that pressed about hiding his existence. He knew that sooner or later it would have slipped out anyways. “... a regular friend.”

“A friend? I was just kidding, I didn't think... You met another mer?”

“Not… exactly…”

Amanda’s eyes went wide. “A _human_?”

Elijah squirmed. “We don't have to talk about this. Let's just go find some food.”

“No, we do have to talk about this. Dad…”

“I know, I knew your mom even better than you did. Don't try to lecture me about her.” Elijah sighed a moment later. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound angry. I just… I’m worried. Robert and I have been seeing each other a lot, and he didn't come today. I know he’s probably fine, it's stupid to be so worried, but it just sort of hit me that I have no way of knowing… I can't go to where he lives. If he doesn't come to me, I can never see him again. I guess it's the same way for him, though. He can't come to the bottom of the ocean where we live…”

Amanda was gaping at her father as he rambled. There was a lot of information that was news to her spilling out of his mouth. For one, a human had been meeting up with her dad for a while, and he was apparently something special.

“Robert, huh?” Amanda grinned.

Elijah huffed, starting forward again to avoid Amanda’s gaze. “Yes, Robert. I'm worried about him.”

“I’m sure he's fine, Dad.”

“I know… It's frustrating, though. You must understand.”

“Yeah, no, I understand.” Amanda frowned slightly. “It sounds like it sucks… But how long have you been seeing this guy for?”

“Hey, you know it's not that kind of _seeing_.”

Amanda giggled. “Sure.”

“For real, Amanda,” Elijah insisted, starting to sound annoyed. “He's a human.”

“So?”

Elijah stopped, turning around to look at Amanda. “What do you mean _so_?”

“I mean _so_ ,” she said firmly, crossing her arms over her freckled chest. “I mean, I would like to meet him before you decide to get married or anything, but c’mon. Be real. It's been forever since you've liked anyone. Of course I'm gonna take this as serious.”

“Oh, come on, Amanda. No. I haven't liked anyone because there hadn't been anyone _to_ like. Shouldn’t it be concerning if I liked the very first person to come along?”

“No,” Amanda said simply.

Elijah sighed. There really was no reasoning with daughters. “Can we just go get food?”

“Fine,” she sighed back. “But we’re talking about this later.”

Amanda followed behind her father, begrudgingly, in silence, as they went to hunt for dinner. She twirled her spear around in her hands, itching with questions about Elijah’s new beau.

But Elijah was focused on the actual task at hand. He swam towards some small fish, but Amanda made a _bleh_ sound, distracting him.

“Aw, man, no, I'm sick of mackerel,” she complained. “Can we have bonito?”

“Amanda.”

“Sorry, sorry. Carry on. I'll go find my own.” She stuck out her tongue at him, going off in the other direction. Elijah made no move to stop her. “Yeesh, grumpy bear…” she muttered as she paddled away.

A flash of scales caught her eye, and she whipped around to look for them.

“Aha,” she murmured triumphantly, creeping towards the fish. It was a beautiful-looking haddock, and she momentarily forgot about her other plights with the motivation of eating it on her mind.

As she went in for the stab, a sound was suddenly filling her ears. A shadow passed overhead, with some faint human sounds accompanying it. Amanda looked up at the boat, almost letting go of her weapon.

She swam up toward it, curious. It was moving a lot slower for a motorized boat, and the sound coming off of it wasn't very loud. It was quiet music, she found as she approached. There were no voices to be heard. She followed the boat for a few metres, waiting for a fishing rod to pop out or something. But nothing happened. Was this her dad’s human?

She went to the side of the boat, brushing her hand against it lightly as she swam around. She knew that surfacing was a bad idea, and that Elijah would definitely yell at her for it later, but she had a strong feeling that this was Robert.

She waited for the boat to get a little bit farther out before going to breach the surface. But then something grabbed her tail. She shrieked, moving her hips to see… Oh, it was Dad.

“Amanda! What do you think you’re doing?”

“Sorry,” she grumbled. “I thought it might be Robert.”

“It wasn't,” Elijah insisted, not moving from where he had both of his arms wrapped around his daughter’s tail. “Please, _please_ , don't scare me like that.”

“How do you know it wasn't him?”

“I just do. Dad instinct.”

“Oh, boo. You know that's not real.”

“Okay, I don't know it wasn't him, but I don't care right now, because what if it wasn't? And a human saw you?”

Amanda sighed. “I'm sorry, dad.”

“Good. Don't do it again.” Elijah released her from his grip, satisfied, and the two went back to their business.

\---

“I have a feeling that that was Robert,” Elijah admitted as he and Amanda ate their dinner. Elijah swished his tail around in the water from his perch atop a dry rock.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I'm still worrying about him. I was just more worried about you at the moment.”

“Sorry.”

“I'm sorry, too.”

“It should be okay, though. If that was Robert, that means he was out looking for you, meaning he’ll probably be back tomorrow, right?”

Elijah smiled a little. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.”

Amanda smiled, leaning back on the rock. “I wish it was warmer out,” she commented. “We don't come up often enough.”

“Yeah, you're right. I prefer to stay in my water, though.”

“You're such a scaredy-cat, Dad.”

“I'm only scared for good reason, Amanda.”

“I know. I think it's probably good that you’re friends with a human, though.”

“Why’s that?”

“You’ve been sorta closed off since mom…”

“It's called _awkward_ , Amanda, and I've always been that way.”

“That, too,” Amanda laughed, rolling her eyes. “But for real dad, I think it's good that you have a friend. We rarely ever meet other mers. I'm lucky to have the Emmas as friends.”

“Why are they both named Emma again?”

“I dunno, Dad.”

“It's kinda funny that there's only like four mermaids in this area and two of them are named Emma, isn't it?”

Amanda shrugged.

“Alright, kiddo, we should head home.”

“Aight.” Amanda pushed herself off of the rock and back into the cool ocean water. Elijah followed, still thinking about Robert in the back of his mind.

...

Robert realized far too late that he had forgotten to meet Elijah, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to care very much. They were only friends, it wasn't like he had any sort of _commitment_ to him. But they weren't just normal friends -- Elijah was a freaking cryptid merperson. He couldn't lose him. What if he never saw him ever again?

Robert thought about getting up, but never did. He stayed there on the floor in a strange daze for a long time, unaware of the passing time until he heard the back door open, and a voice poured in.

“Rob?” The door creaked closed and a pair of high heels clacked against the floor, steps slow and delayed as they stepped over and around various clutter. “Robert? Ugh, this place is a dump. And it's dark in here. Learn to turn on a light or two sometime."

Robert looked up to meet Mary’s eyes. He was immensely glad suddenly that he was wearing his sunglasses in the house like a weirdo.

“You’re here! And you’re smoking in the house? Oh my god,” she groaned, “put that _out._ "

Robert smothered the cigarette on the tiling of the kitchen floor without hesitation. He didn't really even remember lighting it in the first place.

Mary had a grimace on her tired face. “Where do you keep running off to these days? I swear, I can never catch you.”

“Have you been breaking into my house often?"

“Duh."

Robert sighed, shaking his head.

“Seriously, where have you been? I've been a little worried about you.”

“Oh, you know. Around,” Robert said flatly.

Mary rolled her eyes. “I'm not an _idiot_ , Robert. I know you. Why are you drinking alone on the floor instead of with me?"

Robert glanced down at the empty bottle of Jack Daniel's on the floor beside him, almost as surprised to see it as she was. “Cause I'm a grown man, Mary,” he grumbled, “and I can make my own decisions.”

“Get up,” she demanded.

Robert groaned, and complied, albeit begrudgingly. “There. Happy?”

“No.”

Robert groaned, running a hand through his messy hair. “What more do you want?"

“I want you to stop doing this to yourself.”

Robert let out a heavy sigh. He knew that Mary cared about him. All he could think of in that moment was the number of times the two of them had seen each other do absolutely stupid things. He considered refuting with how often Mary did things like this to herself, but he stopped. She was trying to do something good for him.

“C’mon,” Mary said. “We’re going to Dames’."

“Damien’s? What are we going to do there..."

“Make you feel better."

“But… Damien has a dumb kid, wouldn't it make more sense for us to hang out here?”

Mary gave him a Look. “This isn't exactly a good environment for you. Or for Damien.” She wrinkled her nose at the haze in the room. “You’ll trigger his asthma, you know.”

Robert sighed, but went along with her anyway. Somehow, she always did know best. She smiled triumphantly as they stepped out together into the cool evening air.

The one thing he could appreciate about Mary is that she didn't ask him what was wrong. If he was going to talk about it, it would come out on his own terms, and she knew that. He was less sure of Damien, but he definitely didn't mind the man. He was nice, and could be fun to be around, and he and Mary were quite close. Sure, he was very eccentric, but Robert supposed he could be considered that way as well. Damien was not quite as hard to understand as Robert, though.

Mary knocked on the door to the gothic mansion. She examined her fingernails as she awaited a response. Robert quietly ran his shoe along a small crack in the walkway.

“Mary?”

“Hey, Dames,” she greeted with a smile, leaning on the doorframe.

“Good evening, Mary.” Damien was wearing his glasses and a casual t-shirt, but he still kept up his usual level of formality. “And Robert! What a surprise. What brings you here at such an hour?”

“We’re here because this one needs some cheering up,” Mary explained, pointing to Robert.

“Oh!” Damien flustered as he leaned in to quietly address Mary. “I imagined we would go to Robert’s home for the proposed _cheering up_.”

“He needs to get out of the house sometime.” Mary waved a dismissive hand. “May we come in?”

“You… may.”

Damien smiled as he held the door open for Robert. Robert grunted in response as he passed, kicking off his shoes on the mat.

“Lucien is here, but he's upstairs in his room and probably has music on or something; he shalln’t bother us.”

“Cool. Whaddya wanna do?”

“Um. We could watch a film?”

“Tight.” Mary sat down on the couch as Damien fetched the remote for the TV. “Give us something real bad,” she requested. “Like, the cheesiest. Even grumpy here won't be able to resist a smile over a good ol’ disgusting romcom.”

“Romcoms are bullshit,” Robert grumbled, but he knew he didn't have a choice.

He sat passively aside, hands stuffed in his pockets, while Damien and Mary perused through the gallery of romantic comedies on whatever movie watching service Damien used, snorting occasionally at Mary’s comments.

“Not cheesy enough… _Too_ cheesy… Lame… Ew, not Adam Sandler. We’re trying to cure depression, not cause it. _There's Something About Mary_ … I know, right?”

Damien and Robert both smiled.

“Oooh, _Splash_? Didn't Robert say he saw a mermaid at Joe’s yacht party?” Mary stopped suddenly, turning to look at him.

“Yeah.”

“Wait a minute… did you buy that boat because of that?”

“I … can’t disclose that information.”

Mary shook her head. “Is that where you've been so much this past little while? On the water? Don’t tell me you found this mythical mermaid.”

Mary was obviously being sarcastic, but Robert had no idea how to react. _Yes_ wasn't exactly an acceptable answer. He wasn't supposed to tell people about Elijah. But then again… neither of them would believe him if he did say it. It was honestly probably a safer bet than awkwardly denying it.

Robert clicked his tongue. “Something like that, yeah.”

Mary stared at him a while longer before shaking her head and turning her attention back to movie selecting.

Robert’s vague memory that he had forgotten to go see Elijah today was becoming clearer and stronger in his mind. It was fine that he didn't go, he tried to convince himself; Elijah is a grown man and he could handle not seeing his friend for one day. But he also felt worried that he would really never see him again…

“Robert?”

Mary’s voice was suddenly jolting him away from his thoughts.

“Rob. We’re starting the movie. Quit staring off into space and watch.”

“I knew that,” he lied. "How would you even know if I was staring off into space?"

Mary snatched Robert's sunglasses off of his face, giving him an unimpressed raised eyebrow. He scowled at her as she leant forward and placed them on the coffee table.

“Would you like me to fetch any drinks?” Damien asked as Mary went to press play.

“If you got booze, that’d be cool. Or, y’know, pepsi or whatever. Or nothing. I'm sure Robert has no opinion.”

“Hey,” Robert protested. “I have one opinion and that's that coca-cola is superior to pepsi. If you bring me a pepsi, I _will_ walk out of this theatre.”

“I happen to have coca-cola.”

“ _Excellent_.”

Damien flashed a small smile at Robert before disappearing to retrieve the beverages. Robert was almost sure that Damien had alcohol somewhere, but he wouldn't offer it to them as he likely could tell that Robert had already been drinking. Curse his sound logic. Movies were so much more moving when he was drunk.

The movie started, and it was just as stupid and cheesy as Mary had promised.

Damien seemed to be a little into it, and Mary just made sarcastic comments and poked fun at it the whole time. They joined in occasionally, but Robert found himself surprisingly invested after a while.

As it turned out, there _was_ enough alcohol inside of him for the movie to make him cry after all.

Mary looked over as soon she heard the first wheeze, and she bit her lip to hold back her smile. Robert whacked her on the leg without even looking away from the screen.

“Hey, cool it, bitch.”

“‘m not a bitch. It's sad.”

“I never said you’re a bitch for _crying_ , you’re a bitch for hitting me. You shouldn't hit a woman, motherfucker."

“Shut up, I'm trying to watch the movie.”

“Ha!”

They all turned back to the screen, where the couple was having a sad moment. While Robert and Damien were both pretty positive it would be resolved, _La La Land_ had given them trust issues, so it was hard to be sure. Mary rolled her eyes at the two boys, but secretly felt great relief over the emotional response from Robert.

She watched Damien and Robert get emotional over the sad parts, and she watched Damien smile at the final, happy conclusion; but oddly, Robert started to choke up again. She watched him in her peripheral vision, seeing clearly right away that the tears were not from happiness.

“Robert?” she called gently.

He sniffed, wishing he could be wearing the sunglasses right now.

“What,” he responded eventually, voice quiet and empty.

“You good?”

When he hesitated, she didn't miss a beat.

“What's wrong?”

“Elijah,” Robert sputtered.

Both Damien and Mary were staring at him now. The credits started to roll in the background.

“Elijah, I forgot about Elijah. I told Elijah that I would…”

Damien and Mary shared a look of confusion. “Elijah?” Mary echoed. “Who’s Elijah?”

“The--” Robert hesitated once more. He didn't know if he should tell them or not. But he’d said weird things now, and he would no longer be free from questioning. He squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing his temple. “The mermaid,” he groaned.

“The mermaid?” echoed Damien.

Robert sighed. “Yes.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. So there _actually is_ a mermaid?”

“Well, merman, I guess. And yeah.” Robert tried to shrug it off nonchalantly.

“Rob, _what_? You can't just _casually_ tell us there's such thing as _Elijah the merman_ and like, start crying, then not explain anything. What the hell happened?”

Robert sighed again, shaking his head. “I met him. The merman. His name’s Elijah, and we’ve been, hanging out, I guess. And I told him I'd see him today and then I forgot because… something else came up. And now I'm worried, I guess. It's typical of me to forget shit and not do things I said I would, and not show up to things during the day, but Elijah doesn't know that. He's a fuckin’ cryptid fish dude, and I kinda wanna bone him, but now he doesn't know where I am, and I don't know where he is. What if he disappears?”

“Hang on,” said Mary. “You kinda wanna _bone him_?”

“Naturally. God, it's like you don't even know me.”

But Robert’s tone wasn’t the normal, humorous type of dry. It was laced with something else, and served with a slice of tiredness that Mary recognized all too well.

“Okay, well… all that aside _for now_ … There's something else bugging you. I know it.”

Robert grumbled under his breath. She knew. Of _course_ she knew. She wasn't _dumb_. He knew that if he refused to respond, she would find out sooner or later anyway, so there was no use.

“It's Val,” he admitted.

“Val?” Damien asked. “Your daughter?” His voice was gentle and concerned.

“Yeah. That one.”

“What happened? What's going on?”

The concern on his friends’ faces struck Robert right in the heart. He didn't want to talk about this stupid shit right now, but now he felt like he didn't have the choice.

“She wants to visit. Which is cool, or whatever. I'm good with it. It's just ... different. I'm a little stressed, is all. Forget about it. Don't worry.”

Mary frowned, but dropped it. “Okay. But we’re both parents, you know, so come to us if you need.”

“Your kids are still young. And you guys are actually decent parents. You won't get it.”

“Okay…” Mary said warily. “I'm here for you, though.”

“Thanks.” Robert redirected his attention to the rolling credits on the TV, trying hard to signal that the conversation was over, but he could _hear_ the gears spinning in his peers’ heads. As the cheesy credits song faded out, the room fell to silence. He could feel the air thickening with Damien and Mary’s curiosity, and he knew that any second they would burst.

“Mermaids are real?” / “You’re _boning_ a fucking _merman_?”

“Yes. Wait, no.”

“Are there mermaids everywhere? Or is there just one?”

“There's… a few.”

“Can I bone a merman?”

“No, Mary.”

“Can we meet Elijah?”

Robert fell quiet. “No. Not now. He's afraid. I don't even know if I'll see him again.”

Mary and Damien shared a look of concern. Robert turned away, pretending to focus on cracking open his second can of coke.

They both really wanted to know more about the merman, but they stopped asking.

“You … wanna watch another bad movie?”

“No. I'm going to go.”

“Home?”

“No. To the water.”

Mary and Damien were both frowning.

“You sure?”

“I'm sure.” Robert was rising, jingling his keys inside of his jean pocket.

“Okay, well, be safe,” she said, unsure.

Robert left, walking down the small stretch of sidewalk to his truck. He hopped in and drove down to the marina, fumbling with the keys to his boat.

He plugged his phone into the aux for some peace of mind, and out of a sliver of hope that Elijah might hear the music.

He thought back to Mary and Damien, and how concerned they had looked watching him cry, and watching him leave. It was unheard of for Robert to put in this level of effort for anything or anyone, and he briefly wondered why he couldn't spare this much effort for his poor daughter, when she was trying her absolute best not to hate him.

He shook his head, staring out into the depths of the water. He felt an overwhelming urge to just jump in. Maybe never come back. Val might even be relieved to hear the news.

Robert stared for a long time, feet planted on the edge of the boat. His clothes were fairly heavy… Would he even float? Could he just sink peacefully to the bottom and let his troubles all float back to the shore without him?

But suddenly, a voice drew him from his contemplations.

“Robert?”

Robert blinked.

He turned on his heel, dazed, seeking out the source of the voice.

“Robert!”

A wave of strange, hot relief washed over him as he met the familiar eyes in the water below him.

“Elijah,” he breathed.

“Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah.”

Robert took a seat back in the inside of the boat.

“I missed you today,” Elijah said. Then he flushed. “Not _missed_ you, like, I didn't _miss_ you, we both-- we didn't see each other, I mean.”

Robert smiled finally, and he felt a strong wave of guilt wash over him. Everything was fine. Everything was fine and he had people who cared about him and he’d just been thinking about throwing himself overboard.

“Yeah, sorry it's late. I don't pay much mind to the time, usually,” he fibbed, running a hand through his hair.

“That's cool,” Elijah nodded, falling silent. He could probably tell that something was wrong, but he didn't pry.

While he was glad that Elijah had stopped asking him about his personal life, it made it incredibly hard for Robert to open up now. There was no way his problems would come up naturally in conversation. If he wanted to talk feelings, he would have to bring it up himself. And he _hated_ doing that.

“We need to decide on a better spot to meet,” Elijah decided, tapping his fingers on the edge of the boat. “It's too easy for us to miss each other like this.”

“That's true. Do you know anywhere?”

Elijah thought for a moment.

“Ooh, I have a place. Follow me.”

Robert didn't get much time to think before the merman was disappearing under the water. He scrambled to pilot the boat in his direction.

Elijah re-appeared several times to guide him, and soon they were arriving at a rocky cliff overlooking the water. There was a beach nearby, but far enough away that Elijah didn't feel endangered. The treacherous mountain of stone stretched out for a long time, and there was no way humans could approach them from shore here.

“This is nice,” said Robert.

“Just wait,” Elijah winked. “It gets better.”

“How so?”

“Hmmm… You have to come in for that, and it might be a little cold. Why don't I show you tomorrow?”

Tomorrow. There would be a tomorrow.

“Sure.”

And they parted ways like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i need to be more consistent with updating this bc once again ive had this all written for like. a while but just not felt good enough abt it and not inspired enough to work on improving it... uhhh i have plans of where im going with this at least now so if we just utilize a lil patience we'll get there eventually


	5. Pineapple on Pizza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damien comes over to return something that Robert left at his house, and offers some relevant advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok.....hi.. its been AGES since ive updated this. i gotta stop ending the chapters on cliffhangers. god.  
> anyway  
> here is some softness, the appearance of the titular song, and some damien and robert friendship for yall... c:  
> (speaking of, maybe we'll see a spike in ddadds popularity again because of these two soon when that new comic drops [eyes emoji])

Elijah took Robert to the place where he and Amanda sometimes hung out. It could only be accessed from the water, so it was private. It was their own personal “behind the waterfall” sort of location. The cave itself had to be accessed from the water, but once you were inside, it was breathable human terrain, with even a little trickle of sunbeams coming in from above.

Above the entrance, the rocky wall made for good cover, too, and from behind Robert’s boat, nobody would even spot Elijah.

“You ready?”

“I don't know what I’m ready for, but I … am always ready.”

“Well it's down here and you’re still all the way up there.”

Robert sighed, smiling as radiantly as the sun beating down on him.

“You know, I've yet to actually see you swim,” the merman grinned. “You really should come in the water.”

“Are you going to drag me down and eat me?”

“Mm, probably not,” Elijah smiled, eyes glinting as he dipped into Robert’s patented sense of humour.

“Alright, I guess I could take my chances.”

When Robert began to remove his shirt, Elijah realized he was in for a little bit more than he’d bargained for. He found it peculiar the way hair grew on his chest, not just on his head. And on his legs, too, come to think of it. He found it peculiar in a weirdly attractive sort of way.

But then, the human jumped in beside him, creating a splash that knocked some sense back into him.

“There you go,” he teased. “Looks like you can swim after all.”

Robert scoffed, and Elijah smiled warmly.

“Come on. Follow me.”

Elijah swam forward, parting the mess of plants hanging off the rocks into the water to reveal the entrance to a tiny cave.

“Hey. This is neat.”

Elijah beamed. The curtain of foliage fell closed behind them and Robert pulled himself up onto a rock, feeling an odd sense of serenity. He almost felt like he was in a whole other reality here. It was … peaceful. He could get used to this.

\---

Even hidden away in their private little cave, they would still enjoy the music from Robert’s boat.

Robert sat up on a rock, his feet dangling in the water. Elijah looked up at him from below, elbows propped up on the shore. Elijah bobbed his head keenly to the songs, but often had questions about the lyrics. Humans were weird and did a lot of crazy stuff. Robert wasn't normally such a big talker, but explaining mundane parts of his life to a real life mythical creature was understandably enjoyable.

“What _is_ a pina colada?”

Robert chuckled at the question. “It's a drink.”

“What kind of drink?”

“Rum with coconut milk and pineapple juice. It's really quite good.”

Elijah was wrinkling his nose. “You lost me. What's rum?”

“It's a type of alcohol. Which is--”

“Ah, alcohol. Partying boat people seem to really love this stuff. I’ve heard it's what makes them so loud.”

Robert started to laugh, and Elijah furrowed his brow in confusion. “I’ll bet it is.”

“Okay, you said coconut… and what was the last one you said? In pina coladas.”

“Pineapple?”

“Yeah.”

“Another kind of fruit. One of my favourite. It's green and spiky on the outside, and then yellow in the middle. Kind of sour and sweet. It's the _best_ topping for pizza.”

“Pizza..?”

“What? Man, you have so much you need to learn... I'll bring you some next time.”

“O...kay?”

Elijah ran his fingers through a small patch of sand. He wondered about pizza, and about other things in Robert’s life. There were so many questions… yet at the same time, none at all. There was so much to say that he didn't even know how to say it, or where to begin. He was sure Robert probably felt the same way. He glanced up at him, just fast enough to watch his eyes shy away to look at the water. Elijah smiled, feeling something he wasn't able to describe. Something warm; bright, but flickery. Something new, but at the same time, familiar. He didn't know if he liked it or not. He returned his gaze to the rippling water as well.

\---

Back at home that night, Robert settled in to his couch -- with a bucket of ice cream and a wholehearted enthusiasm to ignore his problems -- to enjoy the newest season of Long Haul Paranormal Ice Road Ghost Truckers. He didn't normally watch a lot of reality TV, but this show was an exception sent from the heavens itself. It was exciting, stupid, and surprisingly self-aware. Robert was excited for this new season. But of course, as all things are timed so _perfectly_ , as soon as he hit play, the doorbell rang.

 _Who even uses doorbells?_ he thought to himself as he slowly forced himself up to answer the door.

Standing before him in the warm evening air was Damien.

“Good evening, Robert.”

“Oh, hey...”

“I hope I haven't disturbed you. I came to return this.” Damien held out a pair of sunglasses in his hands. “You left them at my place the other night. I'm sorry that I didn't return them sooner, but you weren't here when I attempted to yesterday.”

“It's fine.”

“I imagine you were with…..” Damien scrunched his face up as he tried to remember. “Elijah?”

“Oh. Uh, yeah. Yeah.”

Damien nodded, smiling. “How’s that going for you, by the way? If you don't mind me asking.”

“Um, it's fine, I guess.” Robert tapped his fingernails on the door, somewhat impatient. He knew it was rude to want him gone so quickly, but he wasn't exactly the type for unplanned social situations. He wasn't even very good with planned ones, to tell the truth. He would even go so far as to say -- even if it seems a bit edgy-- that he _doesn't really like_ people.

“Yeah, uh... thanks for the sunglasses…” Robert began to wrap up this encounter, but Damien wasn't finished yet.

“Oh, and uh, actually, I… There was something else I wanted to ask you about.” Damien’s eyes were frowning, but his mouth was forced into a small, pleasant smile. “Mind if I come in?”

Robert made a face, stifling a sigh. He shrugged. “Sure.”

Robert went and sat down on the couch. Damien followed.

“I don't mean to overstep my bounds, not by any means… So pardon me if I pry too far, but … Your daughter,” he began tentatively.

Robert made a small noise of affirmation.

“You said that she called you. I just wanted to know… What did she say?”

“Just that she wants to visit, I dunno.”

“What did _you_ say?”

Robert huffed.

Damien immediately recoiled. “I’m sorry, was I-?”

“Nothing. I didn't say anything,” he grumbled. “Like an absolute idiot. I was just stunned… Now she thinks I don't want to see her. She thinks I hate her.”

“Well, did you call her back?”

“No.”

Damien fell silent. It was evident that he had no idea what to say. Coincidentally, Robert felt the same way.

Damien bit his lip. “I don't want to tell you anything you already know, but…”

“I should talk to her. I know.”

“But you don't know what to say?”

Robert said nothing, but Damien knew he was right.

“I wish I had more to offer… But if you can't call her, maybe try texting instead. There’s no shame in starting small. I’m sure she would appreciate any sort of update from you, anything to make her think you don't … _hate her_. Kids can be difficult. But if we parents act difficult right back, nothing gets anywhere.”

Robert played with the sunglasses in his hands, staring down at them so as to not have to meet Damien’s eye. “Val’s not a kid anymore.” His voice came out colder than he intended.

“No, she’s not, you’re right. Our circumstances are far different and I shouldn't even compare them.” Damien bit his lip. “But… you should still contact her as soon as possible. If she went so far as to reach out to you, there must be a reason. I think you should try to hear out that reason. I know it's hard for you, and I know I may not understand why, but I know you can do it. Just send her a simple text. Tell her you’d be happy to have her over.” He paused. “Or whatever it is you're thinking, if that's not right.”

Robert said nothing.

After a short, awkward period of silence, Damien rose. “I’ll leave you to your show now, and your dessert. I won't overstay my welcome.”

“Thanks,” grunted Robert.

“Try to keep what I said in mind. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”

Robert placed the sunglasses down on the table. He stuck his spoon into the ice cream. Damien was right. Damien was right about everything; every single damn word had been spot on. He stared at the paused TV for a while in silence. His phone was burning a hole into his pocket.

He sucked on a spoonful of the ice cream, vaguely aware that it was the first thing he had eaten all day. He suddenly remembered the previous discussion on pizza, and felt his stomach starting to grumble. Maybe he would get himself some and bring leftovers for Elijah.

He replaced the spoon in the ice cream bucket, sighing. He couldn't just acknowledge that Damien was right, and then not do anything to repair his behavior, or his acknowledgement would mean literally nothing. He didn't deserve pizza or hot mermen or even paranormal tundra trucking shenanigans if he couldn't even force himself to do the simple task of sending a text message.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket, and went to Val’s contact. He stared at it for what must have been a few minutes. He knew he could do it. He was capable of so much more than what he thought. He _knew_ he was. He could do it.

He wiggled his fingers, itching to type a message. A short, simple message. He clicked on the text box, and watched the little typing line flash in and out of existence. He thought about what he might say.

He stared a little longer.

Then he shook his head, and dialled Papa John's.

…

Robert showed up to meet Elijah the next day at the usual spot, a small smile on his face and an odd black accessory covering his eyes. He seemed to be quite excited about something.

“So, pizza,” Robert said emphatically.

Elijah smiled quizzically. “Pizza. I remember you mentioning this the other day. What about it?”

“I gotta tell you about pizza.”

“Alright, go on.”

“So, bread, right?”

“Mhm.”

“In usually a round shape but I guess it could be square but it's not as good square, fuck what you’ve heard. Anyway, then you cut it into triangles with this thing that humans designed specifically for cutting pizza with… So bread, sauce, cheese, and toppings. Whatever you want on it. Within reason, of course.”

“Sounds amazing. Your food is so different from what we have down here. There's so much art and so much work put into it. You have access to so many things that I don't.”

“Have you ever had human food?”

“Yes, a time or two… Alex and I would steal from people’s boats,” he admitted sheepishly.

“Yeah? What kinda stuff?”

“I had cheese once. It was exquisite. Most stuff doesn't work underwater, though. We tried to steal bread but it just went waterlogged… I’ve never gotten to try it. One time someone dropped a thing of chips overboard and it wasn't even open so we went up to land and ate them. It was good.”

“That's it? Cheese and chips? And not even together as nachos? A crime…”

“I had some other things I’m unsure of what they were. More natural stuff? But yeah, basically. The cheese was good…”

“Oh man, are you ever in for a treat…”

Robert procured a square cardboard container. When he opened it, steam rose out. It was indeed a round, cheesy bread product. It looked delicious. A few slices were already missing out of the circle. 

Elijah tingled with excitement. He took a slice, and Robert set the rest of the box down safely in the boat.

“Mmm!!!” Elijah exclaimed as he bit into the pizza. “The flavours! There is so much going on in my mouth right now,” he enthused. “The cheese, the pineapple…!”

Robert was smirking. “Fuck yeah, the pineapple. You know, pineapple on pizza is actually a very controversial topic for us humans.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Some people just don't know what’s up.” Robert shook his head. “‘It's a fruit,’ they say, ‘fruit doesn't belong on pizza,’ but to that I say: shut up, and learn to live a little, before I meticulously remove your spine and render you immobile, paralyzed, and leave you to die on the cold, greasy Domino’s floor.”

“I… see…”

Elijah spent a long time savoring the slice of pizza. After a period of silent post-meal contemplation, he sighed.

“You’re so lucky to get to eat like that all the time.”

Robert scoffed. “This isn't even fancy food.”

“It's not?” Elijah was genuinely shocked.

“No, this is the cheap greasy stuff. There’s like, million dollar dishes out there. But to be honest, this is probably better. Fancy food usually involves a lot of weird, unnecessary stuff.”

“Have you ever eaten raw fish? It gets boring after a while.”

“I have, actually. Definitely not the same way you do it... it's actually sort of a fancy thing to eat raw fish for us humans.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. You only get it at sushi restaurants here.”

“Sushi?”

“God, I wish I could take you out for some. It's all stuff you’d know. Seaweed, salmon… Ocean-y … stuff.” Robert made a vague hand gesture. “But in a different way than you’re used to. It’d probably be pretty fun to try.”

Elijah felt warmed by Robert’s enthusiasm to take him out. He wasn't sure why, but he felt bubbly inside at the words. “I wish I could go, too,” he murmured.

Robert was smiling at him. “I can start bringing you treats every day from now on, if you want.”

“Yeah? I’d love that.”

…

Despite how happy Robert was when he was with Elijah, as soon as he left, he snapped back to reality pretty hard.

Something about being on the water and hanging out with cryptids really drew you away from the real world, but once you were back on land…

Robert stared at Val’s contact in his phone once again. He just had to text her. It really wasn't hard. It was just hard to think about what she might say in response. What he might say wrong. He had done a lot of things wrong before, and that wasn't just magically going to go away now. He didn't feel ready for a confrontation with Val, but he probably never would. It didn't matter if he was ready or not, he had to do it.

When he couldn't bring himself to do it yet again today, he thought maybe he should consult Damien again. He had been _aloof_ with him before, to say the least. He very possibly owed him an apology. That was another thing he wasn't good at doing. But at the very least, he could give him a call.

It wasn't until the phone was already ringing that Robert realized it was past eleven o'clock in the evening. He bit his lip, but he committed to his choice. One ring. _Is he even going to answer?_ Two rings. _Is he asleep?_ Three rings. _Who else is going to help me at this time?_

“Hello?”

“Oh… Uh, hi, Damien.”

“Robert? Is something the matter?”

“Mm, kinda. Sorta. Sorta-kinda.”

“Sorta-kinda?”

“Whatever. Val. It's Val.”

“Have you texted her?”

“Well, you see… The thing is... No.”

“Oh.” Damien’s voice was quiet. Disappointed. “Oh, I see.”

“I-I wanted to… to say sorry, also. One, for not listening, and two, for… sorta being obvious about the fact that I wasn't listening…” Robert’s voice was an embarrassed grumble now, but Damien was still floored by the sentiment. “I… yeah.”

“That's quite alright, Robert. Do you want my help in drafting a message?”

Robert sighed. He rubbed his neck. He didn't say anything for quite some time. He sighed again, quieter. Then his voice came out, softer and more resigned than ever.

“...Yes.”

Damien was smiling on the other end. “It would be my pleasure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i dont even like pineapple on pizza.
> 
> fr tho thank you to everyone whos stuck with me through this!!!! im in university now so life is kinda hella stressful rn but i do have high hopes of continuing this story, i have stuff written for later on in the story and i fully intend on using it... we'll get there. one day.  
> thank you so so much to everyone who left comments, i cant even begin to describe to you how much they mean to me!! i usually dont reply to them but trust me, i always read them and they make my day every time. they are SO appreciated. reading a new comment on this the other day is honestly a big part of what inspired me to finish writing this chapter... so thank you  
> ilu all so much :')


	6. Come Talk To Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [I can imagine the moment / Breaking out through the silence / All the things that we both might say ](https://youtu.be/5N5HSDvaZcI)
> 
>  
> 
> some much-needed heart-to-heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well hello... its been 2 months since i updated and time has been FLYING for me so it doesnt feel like it but i know what waiting for a fanfic to update feels like, so im sorrY.  
> BIG shoutout to everyone who left sweet comments over the past couple months, they really warmed my heart and every comment inspired me to go write a little more of the fic after not touching it for a while. i cant even thank you guys enough ♡ hope you enjoy

“How's Robert?”

“He's good,” sighed Elijah, “I guess.” As much as he didn't love the way Amanda was smirking at him, the thought of Robert made him smile a little. He was becoming less of a mystery every day, and every little piece of him that Elijah unlocked gave him a bubbly, happy feeling. There were definitely still mysteries... So many mysteries... But Elijah felt so comfortable with him, and he adored getting to learn more about him, day by day.

“Earth to dad…” Amanda called, amused.

Elijah blinked. Had he gotten lost in thought? “Sorry. What'd you say honey?”

Amanda rolled her eyes. “Frickin’ nerd. I said, doesn't Robert have a life? A family? Most humans at an age like that settle down, have kids and whatnot…”

“I don't…” Elijah frowned. “I don't know if he does. It's never come up.”

“How has it never come up? It seems like you two are all over each other, how could you possibly not have asked him if he's single…”

“He doesn't like personal questions. Or ‘small talk.’ Whatever that means.”

Amanda shrugged. “Well, you should try asking him.”

“No -- Since when are you so interested in my personal life?”

“Since now.”

Elijah sighed. He really did wonder about Robert's possible family situation, though. He would have to ask him. Not that he necessarily wanted to date him… not that he could even date him if he wanted to -- they were of entirely different _species_ , they could never be together. The thought sent a temporary, unexplicable stab of sadness to his heart.

Amanda was frowning at him. “Whatcha thinkin’, dad?”

“N-nothing, don’t worry about it.”

\---

Robert blew out a huge sigh as he hung up the phone. Damien was a huge help, but it was always completely exhausting to be emotionally open like that. He felt drained. But he had done it. He had sent a text to his daughter. He was relieved, but… he almost felt more anxious now than he had before. Now he was awaiting a _reply_. She was going to _text him back_. And he was going to have to text _her_ back _again_ and they were gonna have a _conversation_. God, this was so hard. He let his phone fall down into the couch cushions and he leaned back, covering his eyes with his hands. _Life sucks_ , he thought.

He left his phone to be lost in the couch and paced into the kitchen. He glanced around at his incredibly barren cupboards, worrying about what would happen if Val came around and saw him like this. He briefly thought maybe that would be another mission for Damien and Mary to help him with, but he quickly dismissed the idea. He could clean his house and buy groceries all on his own. Even they didn't get to know how understocked his kitchen was, or when the last time he had done his dishes was.

The only thing in his kitchen cupboard at the moment besides some stale crackers and an old bag of marshmallows was the pina colada mix he had picked up specifically to make for Elijah. He stifled a sigh, running his hands through his greasy hair. He needed a change. That was for sure. He just didn't know how to do it. It was clear to him by now that there were some things he couldn't do on his own. But it was so hard to ask for help.

He glared at the pina colada mix. Elijah didn’t even know how hard he tried for him. How _effortlessly_ he put effort in for him. Robert failed to understand it. It was absolutely stupid. He sort of hated that all of the things in his life right now all were just Elijah. Elijah didn't even know! He almost wanted to tell him about this state he was living in, but he couldn't bring himself to. Being around the merman was his one escape from the disarray of his life, and he couldn't bring himself to ruin that. He would have nothing.

Robert closed the cupboard door, letting out a long exhale.

He thought about the things Damien had said about Elijah during their brief non-Val related conversation over the phone. He didn't like the way he casually threw the word _romantic_ around like it was okay. He felt annoyed just thinking about it. He did not have any _romantic_ feeling for a merman. His life was _not_ revolving around a merman.

Tomorrow he would go shopping, he decided. Tomorrow he would go shopping and not buy anything Elijah-related.

…

Robert huffed as he pushed his cart down aisle 7 of the SuperValu. He pushed past shelves upon shelves worth of food, not sure what to even put in his cart. He wished that he had had the foresight to make himself a grocery list. He couldn't even remember the last time he had actually cooked a meal, and for a minute, he wondered how the hell he was even alive.

Then he felt sad. He once enjoyed cooking. He used to really love doing it for Marilyn and Val, but it became depressing to cook when it was just for himself.

When he realized he was stopped dead in the middle of the aisle, and was being side-eyed uncomfortably by a young couple, he decided to pilot his cart towards the frozen foods. Frozen things didn't go bad, so he could buy whatever he wanted from there and not have to worry about it. It wasn’t ideal, but it was a start, at least. He grabbed a couple of pizzas and tossed them into his cart. He also grabbed some microwave meals, the kind that boasted “Healthy Choice” on them and contained vegetables and the like; he was feeling adventurous.

He went down another aisle, and his mind was blank. What did Val like to eat? If she was even coming over, that is. She hadn't responded to the text yet, and Robert was both afraid and relieved. He didn't feel ready to talk to her, but… he needed to. He needed to be there for her. Hell, he needed to be there for _himself_. He was even worse at that one, unfortunately.

He wondered briefly what Elijah would want to eat, but he shook his head. He was supposed to be taking care of himself. What did _Robert_ want to eat? That was supposed to be the question. But his mind came up blank. He groaned inwardly. Why was everything just so hard?

_No_ , he thought pointedly. _This isn’t hard_. None of this would be hard for an average, normal person. _Why am I like this?_

Unloading his groceries on the conveyor belt, he felt a little bit embarrassed. He always did. His entire mess of a self, on display for the teenage cashier to see. To judge. And no, he didn't have a points card.

By the time he got home, any inspiration he had previously had was completely drained from his body. He placed his grocery bags down on the counter and placed himself down on the couch. He closed his eyes.

\---

Robert woke up a few hours later, still on the couch. Had he fallen asleep? _Ugh_.

He rubbed his eyes. _What time is it? What_ year _is it?_

Robert sighed. He patted himself down in search of his phone, eventually drawing it from his jean pocket. He lit up the too-bright screen to check the time, but was instead greeted by a notification. A text.

From Val.

He felt nauseated suddenly, his mouth too dry and the air not fresh enough. Without remembering to look at the time, he set the phone down on the table and made a run for the back door.

20 minutes and 0 checked texts later, Robert heard his name being called from somewhere nearby.

He looked weakly up to find Mary climbing over the fence at him. He didn't know why she would climb over, rather than go around. It was completely inappropriate in the skirt she was wearing. He made no comment.

“Robert,” she called again.

“Yeah?”

“Hey. I saw you lookin’ fucked out on your depression porch, and I thought I'd come say hello -- try 'n cheer you up.”

Robert grunted, flicking the remains of his cigarette to the ground.

Mary smiled. It was odd. Normally, smiling isn't what you'd do in a situation like this, but somehow her smile made sense. It was completely comforting.

“Thanks, Mary,” he grumbled.

“No prob, Rob.”

Robert rolled his eyes, leaning on the railing. He tapped his fingers in no particular rhythm. Mary hummed.

“You wanna talk about it?”

“Not really.”

Mary laughed. “Yeah, okay, tough guy. Spill.”

Robert buried his head in his hands. “I texted Val.”

“And?”

“And she texted me back.”

Mary was raising an eyebrow. “And?”

“And?” echoed Robert, unamused.

“And? You texted her, she texted you back? That's what's got you down? What else was supposed to happen?”

There was a long silence.

“Fuck,” Robert muttered. “I don't know, listen…”

“What did she say?”

“I haven't read it.”

“Yeesh.”

Mary was frowning sadly, in concern -- no, in pity. And Robert hated it.

“Robert.” Robert scowled, not wanting to hear it. “Can we unpack this?” Mary was saying. He squeezed his eyes shut. “Why are you so stressed over a message? Now -- I know it's not _just_ a message, I get it. I do. But..?” She made a vague hand gesture.

“No, we aren't _‘unpacking’_ this. It's not-- Look, I just don't know how to deal with this situation. I saw her message and I panicked completely. I don't know how to talk to her. I'm not a good dad.”

“You're not even giving yourself the chance--”

“I don't care! It’s- we're not talking about it.”

Mary sighed, but she relented. She leaned against the wood frame of the porch, silent.

“I'm sick of talking about my stupid feelings. If you're gonna be here, can we at least do something fun?”

“Alright,” she responded eventually. “What's something fun?”

“Arson.”

“Maybe we should start a little smaller than that first.”

“Throw rocks at children--”

“No.”

“How about…” Robert thought for a moment. His heart hadn't been in the shenanigans a few moments ago, but now the gears were spinning in his brain. “We set up a booth by the sidewalk, with a sign on it that just says ‘5 dollars', and then when people come by and ask what we're selling, we tell them: ‘oh, you'll find out.’”

Mary couldn't help the laugh that came bellowing out of her. “Ominous… I love it. But for real, what you're going to do is a bit less fun. But you need to do it. You're gonna unpack your shit to Elijah.”

“To Elijah,” Robert repeated, disbelieving.

“Yeah. You apparently don't feel like talking to me. And I think it'd help you.”

“Whatever,” he mumbled.

Mary wasn't sure if that was a good whatever or a bad whatever, but she trusted in Robert to do the right thing. “Good,” she said.

There was a long silence. Eventually, Robert lifted his head, running a finger along the wood of the railing pensively. “Hey, Mary?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you wanna get together for a dinner party sometime?”

Mary looked up at him. “Dinner party? You cooking?”

“I think I'd like to, yes.”

A smile started to spread across her face. Robert met her gaze with a smile of his own.

“I'd like that, Robert. That sounds like fun.”

\---

Robert unpacked his grocery bags finally, putting everything away to its rightful place. Then he picked up his phone off the table.

Mary hadn't said it outright, but he understood the message well enough: he was being a dramatic little bitch. It really wasn't hard to talk to Val -- she was his daughter. And it wasn't like they were fighting yet in this particular text conversation...

It read:

Robert:  
hey, Val. I'm sorry for not answering you sooner. it was kind of a dick move of me. i don't not want you here or anything. i probably came across that way on the phone call. you can come visit whenever you like. you're always welcome back in the nest. are you bringing anyone?

Val:  
nope, just me.  
and it's cool. idk when i'll be there. but thanks. i'll let you know when the dates come up.

Robert wiggled his fingers in front of the keyboard for a second, before typing ‘ok.’

It felt really weird. He wanted to know what she _wanted._ He wanted to ask, but he didn't know how. It was entirely possible that she just wanted to visit -- she was his _kid_ after all. It's not like he'd been an _abusive_ father to her. He'd just been… a bit immature, a bit distant, a bit short-tempered… a bit of a lot of things.

He hit send.

\---

Despite his recent complaints about Elijah taking over his life, as soon as he laid eyes on the merman, his whole heart turned to mush.

He started to realize that there wasn't actually anything wrong with basing parts of his life on Elijah. It was actually a big help for him in a lot of aspects. Having someone to do things for was a good inspiration. He just wished that he could do things for himself, or for his daughter... but he'd take what he could get. Elijah was a great guy.

He needed to start being honest with him. He was Robert’s rock, yet somehow he really knew nothing about his personal life. He hadn't wanted him to know. Robert kept to himself about such things. He was terrified of being judged. Of being disliked.

He stared at Elijah now. This man -- whom he admired, whom one might even go so far as to say he _adored_ \-- knew next to nothing about him. Mary was right; Elijah deserved to know.

It was hard for Robert to break down his walls enough, but… Looking into those ocean eyes just then, Robert felt a pang of… something. He didn't know. But he knew he had to tell him. He took a breath and prepared to spill his guts.

“Elijah…” he began.

Elijah could sense the tension within him immediately.

“I need to come clean and be honest with you.”

“Honest about what?” the merman asked. His ocean eyes were just too much. His big, dumb, _beautiful_ blue eyes, filled with all that caring concern… Overwhelmed, Robert broke eye contact, settling his gaze somewhere up in the sky, towards the billowing clouds above them instead.

“I'm … in a really hard place right now,” he admitted. “I've never told you about myself or about my family because… it's hard for me to talk about, or even _think_ about some days. I've been dealing with depression for… for years now. My wife…” Robert sucked in a big breath. He looked back into Elijah's gentle eyes for a brief moment of comfort before turning out to face the ocean. “She died in a car accident. Almost 6 years ago. My daughter… became estranged from me. I was never a _bad_ dad to her before, but I guess I wasn't _super_ … I had a terrible dad myself and I guess it had an affect on me. I always worried I'd end up like him. In a way, I guess I sorta did.”

“So… what happened to your daughter?”

“Tensions were so high between us after Marilyn passed… We fought. As if it were somehow one of our faults. Neither of us blamed the other, but… We were both just, just angry. Hurt. Broken. It brought me down hard. I had struggled with anxiety and depression throughout my younger years, but I had been doing so much better with a happy wife and kid in my life. And then, with her gone, it hit me. It hit me super hard. I turned to drinking. I shut myself in. I couldn't be there for Val like I should have been. And she resented me for it. Every interaction between us spiraled into a yelling match. She … had lost two parents instead of just one. I failed to see it before it was too late. Then, pretty much the day she graduated, she was out the door. We spoke here and there, but really, she wanted nothing to do with me. I never really made any effort to reconcile... It’s been such a long time since I've spoken to her, even through text... Until a few weeks ago…”

“What happened?”

“She--she called me. It was so completely out of the blue. I answered, but I couldn't speak. I was shocked. Eventually she hung up on me. That day sucked. I didn't know what to do. That was the day-- the day that I didn't come til late… and I said that I just don't pay mind to the time. I was really… yeah. Y'know, I sort of freaked out that I almost didn't get to see you. I didn't want you to be gone from my life. You're like… one of the main things keeping me going. It’s stupid, I know, we've only just met, and I have friends… human friends, who know more about me than you do, so they should really be my favourite things out there, but, somehow, maybe… maybe the fact that you know me less makes you easier to talk to?” Robert sighed. He was rambling. He didn't see himself as much of a rambler, normally, but now that he was going he just couldn't stop. “You're really, like, my escape from the world, Elijah. Being with you drew me away from all the troubles in my life, made me feel weightless and free to just live. To just enjoy. I find joy in… unusual things, normally. Alcohol… myths, legends… trying to shock and confuse people with dramatic lies. It was cool to just sort of, be down to earth and chat. You know?” Robert had his hands shoved deep into his pockets, cheeks dusted with a faint blush.

Elijah couldn't help his mouth from hanging open. “Robert. I had no idea what you were going through… I actually… my partner died as well,” he confessed. “It was a lot longer ago, now, but… She…” He swallowed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, she was killed by humans.”

“Oh.” Robert scratched his head. “Shit.”

Elijah’s lips upturned into a smile for a mere second of reassurance, but his face was dark.

“This has probably been harder for you than I could even know, huh?”

“Well, it started out that way. I was really frightened the first time we met. You scared me badly. It was… it was your music that attracted me. I’m sure you could tell I was nervous, but I couldn't stay away from the music. And then I started getting to know _you_. And your kind, your culture. It was fascinating. I really understood her fascination with it suddenly. I mean, when she was around, I agreed with her, it was interesting, but those days seemed so long ago… Ever since she died I'd been extremely wary of all things human. I couldn't possibly allow my daughter to come into any danger. I love her with all my heart…”

Robert clenched his fist. “I love my daughter, too,” he whispered, pained.

Elijah stared up at him.

“Have you told her?” the question came eventually.

Robert swallowed, his leg bouncing anxiously against the floor of the boat. “No,” he admitted. His shame was evident in his voice.

Elijah pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the boat, body twisted to hang his tail into the water, to speak to Robert on his level.

“What's her name?” Elijah coaxed softly.

“Val.”

“Val,” Elijah repeated. His hands flew to hold Roberts’ entirely of their own volition.

Robert nodded, squeezing Elijah's hands.

“Thank you for telling me all of this,” the merman said gently. “I know all of this is … really weird. And I’m sorry if I don't always understand what it is you're going through. But I'm here for you.”

“It is weird," Robert chuckled. "You are the weirdest, best thing that has ever happened to me."

Elijah’s mouth twisted into a soft smile that made Robert’s heart thump faster against his chest.

They held each others hands for a while, sitting in a comfortable silence, and listened to the organic sounds of the wind and waves around them. Robert watched water droplets form off the merman's hair and fall into his lap.

He wanted to live in this moment forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fuckin uhhhh  
> idk if this is right or not i spend a lot of time being unsure of things in my writing but its 2am and i have a midterm tomorrow so like. imma just post it imma just post it and go to bed  
> ♡♡♡♡  
> thank u all again for ur support, it means so much. hopefully the next update will come faster than this one did :)


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